Tactile alerting devices have been widely used in electronic device to provide a tactile alert, sensibly alerting the user of the electronic device that an event has occurred, such as in alarm clock, of that information has been received, such as in a selective call receiver. Prior art tactile alerting devices have taken several forms, most notably a motor with an offset counterweight. Motors while they have been successfully used, generally draw a substantial amount of power, thereby limiting the operational life of such devices when a battery is used. Motors also occupy a significant volume of space, and while the size of the motor can be reduced, such size reductions are often at the expense of the level of tactile energy output that can be generated.
Non-linear tactile alerting devices have been utilized to replace motors as tactile alerting devices. The non-linear tactile alerting devices have significantly reduced the energy required to produce a given level of tactile energy produced, resulting in an increase in the life of a battery. While non-linear tactile alerting devices are a significant improvement over motors, the non-linear tactile alerting devices still require much the same space as that required by a motor.
What is needed is a tactile alerting device which required significantly less space then the prior art tactile alerting devices.
What is also required is a tactile alerting device which operates at a significantly reduced power consumption.
What is also needed is a method for controlling the tactile energy output delivered by the tactile alerting device.
What is needed is a tactile alerting device that can generate an audible alert.